A factually accurate religion, would it help?

‘Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind’ – Albert Einstein

What Do We Mean By Factually Accurate?

Factually accurate means accurate in manifest terms. I’ve already explained that religions don’t have to be factually accurate to actually work and be true in the unmanifest sense. They are all designed to take people to a higher truth – that of a divine loving force.

In that way, Jesus was the Son of God and is the only way and also not. Islam is the only way and also not. Both truths can quite happily co exist on the level of the un manifest – God – because the un manifest is not dependent on the manifest layer at all. A religion can be totally wrong on it’s story of creation, yet still take someone to the destination of experiencing and knowing God.

Now to someone that takes that manifest at the totality that is completely unsatisfactory. The issue is that most religions to grow depend on exactly that sort of person.

 

Exclusivity of a Factually Accurate Religion

Would a factually accurate religion be more useful today to bring people to God than a traditional religion? Of course many traditional religions will tell you that their way is the only way. They refuse any modification, and prevent any questioning, often through the devices of strict doctrine and fear.

In their eyes, to suggest a factually accurate religion or new religion would be absolute heresy.

However, that being said, the modern landscape casts some serious doubts on the exclusivity of any religion, simply because so many people experience God from coming to him in different ways. Some or all of these ways only have scripture to back up that exclusivity. They give this scripture extra evidential gravity based on what they believe.

I know God well. I follow his example of love, over whatever anyone else tells me. He loves us no matter what religion we are. If you think otherwise you are wrong, and he’ll love you just as much. Just like a good human father would love us the same way no matter what our beliefs. God’s love is free and unconditional, but also correcting for our own good.

 

Benefits of A Factually Accurate Religion

One reason a factually accurate religion could bring more people to God is that it pulls down barriers to God, rather than putting them up. There’s nothing beyond the normal reality of things for anyone to swallow. Nothing that’s in conflict with the reality. It’s what is considered real and true that is tested for accuracy.

There are a lot of barriers to current religions that prevent people following them.

People without an experience of the living and loving God simply can’t bring themselves to believe many of the things that science has shown not to be true.

Yet they are prevented from the ultimate truth – God. A relationship with that divine energy that exists which they can experience whilst they are alive.

When traditional Christians for example try and convince non believers they are facing a huge number of barriers. They have to fight against a lot to bring someone on board. It’s hard work to help others experience the very real and wonderful love of God they already experience and know to be true.

Yet what all the interpretations point to is far more important than the interpretations themselves. (Most traditional religions get it the wrong way round.) A factually accurate religion recognises that, there is no better religion, only a better fit for each individual person.

 

What Began The Universe?

It’s very likely the Big Bang or similar process began the Universe. Wether you believe that or not doesn’t alter your potential to experience God however. It is not a barrier at all, no matter what anyone tells you. When Darwin proposed the theory of evolution less than 200 years ago (look at how primitive we still are) many threw religion out of the door and God with it. Evolution if anything only goes to further prove the existence of a hyper intelligent creative force behind all this. Evolution having it’s own design actually supports the argument for God more than it detracts from it.

Yet if you believe the Big Bang and evolution stop you from believing in God or that there is a God – then it will stop you. You’ve put the World over God, prioritised your knowledge and idolised it over the presence of God that remains despite that knowledge. Remember no one knows what set off the Big Bang. The facts beyond reasonable doubt, point to a creative force at play that is not random. The Universe is extremely well organised.

A factually accurate religion would also be based on the facts of reality, rather than of personal belief. It would encourage rigour to prove what is true and untrue using sound methodology. One such fact it would no doubt arrive at is that all religions point to the same God. God is the one true religion – no religion could ever be more correct over the other when it comes to that point. Our different interpretations are not mutually exclusive as they seem to be. At their heart they take us to the very same place.

The invisible power that gave birth to the Universe obviously contained within it a blueprint of organisation. Rules of reality. That explains exactly why the Universe has occurred the way it has. We see patterns of this design, a hugely intricate and wonderful (yet not perfect) masterpiece. The blueprint explains for example why evolution occurs at it does, there are rules in place everywhere that are followed. A framework.

These rules of reality, backed by science, which are really rules of the creative force – God. Nothing can be more true and accurate than those, no matter what we believe. They are solid, eternal, objective and unchanging.

For example, if I believe the World will end and Jesus will come down to earth as described in the Revelations of the Bible that isn’t going to stop me experiencing God at all. There could be millions that believe the same and millions that don’t – yet they still all experience God. The next day, a giant asteroid strikes earth and all life is wiped out.

What is more true now?

Like it or not, the factually reality, the rules of reality, trump personal beliefs about God and personal beliefs about reality.

In themselves, the organisation and scientific rules of reality don’t prove God by their actual existence. However, when we know the objective design and process to coming to God that has been laid out, and exists behind the different facade of all religions, it begins to change things. Drastically.

Coming to God is no different from the process of digesting our food, or breathing. There’s a set way it occurs, no matter how colourfully we describe that way, it’s always the same.

 

‘Superiority’ of a Factually Accurate Religion

A factually accurate religion would be superior in helping people today come to God because it would –

1. Pull down barriers to coming to God within the member and others.
2. Rather than force doctrine on people, encourage people to find God based on their own experience by testing facts out for themselves.
3. Contain a direct and organised path to God, unlike New Age spirituality which is a very disorganised and confusing array of material in no logical order.
4. Create a more sure experience of God rooted in fact and with sound reasoning to protect it from doubt from others.
5. A Holy Book that gives a definite blueprint to living by the correct design of reality, something much needed today.
6. A more practical and scientific approach to living with God.
7. A defence to the obvious outrage, persecution and hatred that would come from traditional religions and those without God.
8. Describe living with God in a way that is in tune with people’s lives today.
9. Allow a life to be lived that is more in tune with the rules of reality, rather than personal beliefs.
10. End relgionism – religious intolerance within the member.
11. End racism and hatred of others nationalities.
12. End over reliance on the World for fulfilment.

So all in all a factually accurate religion, is something that would be useful to people today. That’s true for one simple reason, it would help bring more people to God.

Thanks for reading & God Bless

Barclay Littlewood

God’s Truth Does Not Depend on The World

How can we know God’s real truth?

Well the Truth of God does not depend on the the world. (The world is anything said, seen, known, anything we can feel, touch, experience – basically everything, anything and nothing).

So am I saying that all truths that do depend on the world aren’t true?

That if you disagree with me you don’t know God?

Of course not.

I’m saying that God’s truth can be overlaid by many seemingly different ways. God’s truth is not dependent on the World, and even if you disagree and think that it is – that won’t stop you experiencing God either – because by it’s definition – God’s loves not dependent on the World.

It’s a weakness of human beings what we can get overly concerned by that outer veneer, that Worldy wrapper to things.

What’s far more important is what’s behind all those seemingly different appearances – and that’s people’s experience of God and how it’s directing them to live their lives.

I could argue all day long about how your version of God’s truth is inferior to mine and you could do the same with me. It’s really far less important than how closely someone knows God, which only they can really know.

Whatever version of God’s truth brought you to God, you are blessed to be known and loved by him!

Thanks for reading and God Bless

Barclay Littlewood

How to Deal With Fundamentalism

After the recent Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris, we pray for the healing of the families of the victims. The world is faced with a crucial question once again, how to deal with fundamentalism?

Fundamentalism, whilst not optimum to peace, on one hand isn’t dangerous. It often takes the form of freedom of speech and opinion. There are many fundamentalists who denounce all talk of God and or religion, many that denounce atheists and there are many fundamentalists that denounce all religions asides their own. These are all shadows of potential destructive energy, but it matter to me because it often ends at just words and is the time old classic of ‘my experience is more valid than yours’.

I can see beyond it and it certainly isn’t any reason for hatred. In one way that is how to deal with fundamentalism of sorts, you don’t rise to it.

Whilst both types of fundamentalism I’ve mentioned – materialism and religionism – show intellectual and spiritual immaturity – and often come coupled with intolerance and inconsideration of others – they are harmless to a point.

They do become dangerous when they turn to aggression, hatred, and violence however.

Time and time again in the world we see a destructive energy at work, call it the Devil or whatever you like, but it turns people against other people. And it always does so under the guise of ‘good’ and the doctrine of ‘difference’. The rationale is always the same, ‘we need to criticise you/fight you/eliminate you for the greater good because you are wrong, different, and we are correct.’

Charlie Hebdo thought they were acting for the greater good, and so did their attackers. Now those that use this as an excuse to denounce and attack Islam think they are acting for the greater good too, and so on. That destructive energy begins to feed off itself, with us as people the mere puppets to it’s parasitical nature.

I don’t agree with Charlie Hebdo’s approach from what I have seen, there is freedom of speech and values to protect, but that should be balanced too with a deep consideration of others and our differences. That way freedom of speech is constructive, not destructive. We should all should stand for peace, tolerance, unity, without being hypocritical with our own approach as we do so. However light hearted it may appear to be, intolerance of others is still intolerance.

Of course the victims did not deserve to die for their actions. And those that killed them need to be imprisoned for life. To kill anyone is against what any God would want. God is about construction, life, not destruction and death. The killers would have done far more for their religion, for God, by setting up their own publication preaching the truth of all religions – love, peace and unity and tackling the intolerance of Charlie Hebdo in a peaceful way.

So how to deal with fundamentalism in our day to day lives? Preach the truth and don’t become a fundamentalist yourself. Others are entitled to their own way, to be different. Past all the labels and apparent differences, humanity is one, under one God (or no God for some who have not yet found). We should never mock each other, want to destroy each other based on difference, for when we do we spread hatred, are destroying ourselves, and inviting war upon ourselves.

The actions of a minority never define the whole. The majority of westerners want peaceful co existence, and so do the majority of Muslims. The fringes and extremists who want war should not be listened to.

Beyond it all, beyond all differences, at the heart of all objective truth, all others are the same. We are all part of the creation, the one unified whole, split amongst the many.

We all came from the same creative force, and have it all within us. Our survival relies on the survival of each other, and ensuring the well being of all, no matter what religion, race or nationality.

This is not my opinion, but the factual reality backed by the rules of reality.

We must learn it, see it, experience it, and learn to live together in peaceful consideration of each others differences, or we shall destroy ourselves.

Why no religion is the ultimate truth… and also is

Why no religion is the ultimate truth

At first glimpse, it would seem that I am saying that your religion or any religion cannot be correct. This is not so. On the contrary, all religions are correct. This can be so, even though on the face of it they seem to consist of wildly varying interpretations, factual inaccuracies and aspects which make no sense in terms of the manifest world.

I’ve already covered the theory of Divine Energy and there I discussed how the ‘force’ or ‘energy’ many people call God is actually un-manifest and invisible at it’s base level. It’s non-dependent on the manifest world.

Divine Energy, whilst it’s effects can be experienced, and its presence known, does not conform to the usual rules that govern the manifest Universe. This is why Divine Energy itself can never be ‘pinned down’ in a traditional scientific sense. This is what leading scientists have being trying to do for a long time. They confine themselves to the rules of the manifest, looking for the un-manifest – something which is not confined to such rules at all.

Finding the Divine Energy in this way is just like a never ending game of trying to pin a tail on the ‘right donkey’. The Divine Force is what allows the donkey to be there, and ‘the pinner’ to be and exist and the whole search and action of the pinning to occur. It exists beyond the rules, and physical reality of the whole game, the whole search.

The Divine Energy remains the same despite all attempts to find it and pin it down as being this or that in a manifest sense.

Thus there is no way that science, will ever be able to locate the Divine Energy – perhaps except by the process of subtraction from what is manifest.

All manifest descriptions of God from all religions, including my descriptions, point to the exact same truth – there in a divine, loving power higher than us. They can only be described as different through reference to the manifest world – which is the very thing that all religions point correctly to the very secondary nature of. They all use the manifest world as a stepping stone to God, which is exactly what the world is – a cloak over the truth of the eternal invisible, Divine.

When we flip this truth over, and treat the manifest world as primary to the un-manifest – e.g. The Divine Energy or God become secondary to the manifest layer ‘over the top of it’ – what we say, think or feel about it, that is when as a human race we begin to get into trouble.

Suddenly it becomes about us, our way, our interpretations, and how they are better than, holier than, or more in favour with God than those of others. No matter what we say or do, we must refer to the manifest world to bolster our points. We can be led to believe even that others and their ways are that of the Devil. Communities and families can begin to separate, friendships are lost, marriages can crumble and incredibly cruel acts can be undertaken all in the name of God.

Whether your truth agrees with mine or not, is irrelevant, because ultimately not one path to God can be truer than any another. If you disagree, I respectfully disagree for the reasons stated and am happy to place all that in second place which is exactly where it in reality is.

As such my interpretation cannot be truer than yours for pointing this out – it is absolutely impossible for it to be so – because all differences exist on a manifest level only. I am careful not to buy into the self perceived rightness of my way too much, because it’s actually quite irrelevant.

In this way, all religions are the ultimate truth, and none of them are, all at the exact same time. This statement is something which makes no sense at all and is quite unsatisfactory based on the rules of the manifest Universe.

How can something be true, and not true at the same time? How can two opposing truths both be right and both be wrong – different and the same? Such seemingly nonsense is however all perfectly acceptable on the level of the un-manifest Divine Energy and the entirely different rules it operates on from the manifest.

The truth is what all the manifest interpretations point to, and that truth, God, is higher than them all, including mine.

Transcending The Holy Texts

It’s a fact that had any of the Holy Books been written today, in today’s world, they’d be different.

That’s why so many people find religion and the world we live in so hard to reconcile.

Sadly they throw the baby out with the bath water – and lose out on experiencing God.

Let me be clear, a relationship with God is the greatest thing any human being can experience. Yet there needs to be a certain amount of scrutinising the Holy Texts, then transcending the Holy Texts where they are inaccurate.

There are simply inaccuracies in all the Holy Texts. I mean that with all respect to followers of all religions. I am not saying that they are inaccurate in bringing you to God, I’m saying that some of the versus within them aren’t entirely true, they don’t follow God’s design for the Universe nor his love for us, nor are they beneficial to live your life by.

Specifically –

• Anything that promotes hatred between different races or religions should be ignored.
• Anything that promotes warfare in the name of God should be ignored.
• Anything that promotes harm or aggression towards another human being should be ignored.
• Anything that would have you believe God likes to kill people should be ignored.
• Anything that promotes the religion as being the only way to God should be ignored.

It really doesn’t matter that you believe such verses to be true, look around you.

If there was only one way to God – why have so many come to God in different ways?

Our world is his church. Our church is not his world.

If we are all God’s children why would he want you to hate or be violent to any of the other children?

Be happy you have found God and focus on your own path to him, there’s no need to be overly concerned with the path others follow or the apparent differences, these are Worldy things which are totally inconsequential to God.

God should come before your religion – always.

Why I am not a ‘Traditional Christian’ and Follow Jesus Instead

Before I go on – let us not make anything an issue of love.

I think when we do, we get into trouble, conflict brews. So I express my opinions here, with all love to everyone of all faiths and of none.

Nothing is meant with maliciousness.

Being involved in the Christian faith and coming to it from my own journey of deep introspection into the human mind and human experience, gives me a different insight to many Christians who have been brought up as Christian and never questioned different aspects of their faith.

I, rely on the physical reality for my viewpoints. For example, when people tell me I have a belief in something, they couldn’t be more wrong. I understand the physical processes at play that can take you to an experience of God, our source, and I use them. It’s actually a very boring and mundane approach, but it is belief and theology free.

Different religions exist in strength in different areas, just like different sports do. Like the different sports, they all point to the same enjoyment. What religion you take up largely depends on your location and parents. We are all a product of our environments and heavily influenced by them. I don’t care what any Holy Text say on the matter – that is the reality – and this is the cold hard evidence.

You can believe in or not, it does not change the reality.

It is my view, that Holy Texts must be put in context of the time they were written. Written by the human hand, they all contain glaring omissions, and inaccuracies at a time when less was know, less was understood, and few had a knowledge of the entire world as it was then. They are interpretations of the experience of God. If they were the word of God – they would contain no inaccuracies whatsoever – such as the creation story and the supposed age of the Universe.

All inaccuracies, and accuracies, when it comes to an experience of God – are however irrelevant – take a look at the world for proof and the thousands of differing opinions on God, how the world was created, what he really wants etc. and the experience remains the same.

Ask people something. How does God make you feel? Answers will be similar, peaceful, blissful, loved. Then ask them what they think is the best way to God and what God wants and the answers differ a lot.

Yet people still experience God’s love. Our minds can’t cope with that, how can it be? How can truths exist that are so seemingly opposed to one another, yet they both lead to the exact same experience?

Jesus main teaching was that God is inside of all of us, God loves us, and that we should put our differences asides, and love each other.

Very direct advice, yet wonderfully open and inclusive.

All 3 of these aspects take work to realise. They take a process of self discovery, and the exercise of prayer, meditation, and for many the reading of Holy texts.

For me those 3 aspects cover it all – that’s more than enough, and it’s exactly what I found out for myself.

Of course, God’s love is a wonderful feeling, however, before we can really truly love others, we have to love ourselves – just like God loves us.

And most of us, deep down, don’t do that. At all. It seems what is good enough for God, and God has shown to be right, is not good enough for us. We don’t follow the example, of the never ending love we feel from God.

No, we will change this, be that, get this, and then we will be loved.

We are harsh on ourselves, critical, unkind. We don’t believe in ourselves, support ourselves, have confidence in who we are. So then, how do we even hope to show true love to those around us? The relationship with those around you, both close and distant, is a direct reflection of your real relationship with yourself.

Just like a parent can love a child unconditionally, it does not mean that child will love themselves. Although it is a big help, the child must learn, to truly love themselves. It’s the same with God’s relationship with us, God’s love can help us, but alone it does not guarantee we will love ourselves.

Christians, as much as they try, are often exceptionally divisive – in the name of love. They can have a hard time accepting other branches of their faith, let alone other religions and non-believers. They too, often veer well away from the reality of experience, and their interactions, and delve deep into theology thinking knowing the Bible inside and out, is going to ensure they are well on their way to living the way God shows us is best.

Yet it is not enough. I would rather like like Jesus did, then, know the Bible back to front and be totally unable to execute the core message.

Love.

 

Theology or accuracy of it, is however not required for an authentic experience of God. For example I don’t believe in many of the stories in the Bible. I believe in evolution and the Big Bang are real processes that occurred, and are still occurring. Yet I experience God in the same way anyone else does that believes many stories of miracles, and the Adam and Eve story.

Jesus did not spend his life telling us about many complex belief systems, and trying to convince of with stories we had to take as given for truth. To get lost in such an exercise can, if we are not careful, create more division, more conflict and hate than imaginable. Look at the schisms between religions today. So many differences, so much conflict.

That takes us in the opposite way from the truth.

 

No two minds are the same, but all are loved.

What an example God gives us!

It doesn’t matter what faith you have, or what branch of faith etc. This is not a viewpoint, or a belief, it’s an experiential fact. Take a look at the world around you. The creation that God began. Look at how is actually is. Whatever Holy Book says opposite on the point, is, wrong. There are many paths. I don’t care if you agree, or what evidence you can show me, the actual evidence, is the evidence.

All Holy Books were infiltrated and permeated by inaccuracy, were created by people living in a small slice of the world, guided by their experience of God. They all contain very human qualities that continue to divide the world today…

Men get wound up in their intellects, beliefs, and the superiority of such compared to others, because they think it makes God love them more, and makes them more loveable too.

Once you dissect yourself like this, you will do the same to others.

I cannot say that I have a belief that is superior to gaining God’s love because I cannot even say it is poignantly any different from any other belief, because, what God’s love is, experientially, is beyond all these words. It is at the top of the chain, and as much as his children try and gain favour with this way and that, and squabble about the same, his love remains. Pure and perfect.

Thus, my advice, is it should become less of a concern what other people believe, because you realise the same experience of God’s love underpins it all. The unity you may seek by promoting only one world religion, is already there, shining beyond the divisions and disagreements that exist on the surface.

When people learn that, peace will come.

If the other people’s different views of God anger or upset you, then you should consider what this was always about – love.

Let us never make it an issue of love. For love truly conquers all.

Thanks & God Bless